Manuel Pulgar Vidal challenges Scotland to lead the world in fight against climate change

ONE of the world’s top environmentalists has praised Scotland for its efforts in the fight against global warming but challenged it to step-up and become an international “leader” in tackling climate change.

Manuel Pulgar Vidal was in Edinburgh where he was honoured by the Royal Scottish Geographical Society for his continuing work leading efforts on world agreements over how to tackle environmental threats.

The former Peruvian environment minister, who chaired the UN Climate change Conference in Lima three years ago, said he was “deeply honoured” to have received the Shackleton Medal from them.

But after lavishing praised on the Scottish Government decision to ban fracking, WWF International’s climate and energy chief said Scotland had a generational chance to set tangible targets that raised ambitions for its pending Climate Change Bill in Scotland.

He added: “Act for our future, not just defining a clear target for a carbon neutral economy, but also means for its implementation. Move your actions into farming, into transport, because you can show that you are leading the process.”